Discovering Us
by yogacat
Summary: Eric and Sookie. Entry for Poppin' Eric's Cherry Contest


"**Poppin' Eric's Cherry" One-Shot Contest**

**Title: Discovering Us**

**Pen name: yogacat**

**Status (Virgin or Almost-Virgin): virgin (yeah, right)**

**Primary Players: Eric/Sookie**

**Beta'd by: FDM (we should really pay her for this shit, ya know?)**

**Rated Mmmmmmmmm**

Disclaimer: yeah, well. I have an imagination and not much else.

**To see other entries in the "Poppin' Eric's Cherry" contest, please visit the C2:**

http://www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/community/Poppin_Erics_Cherry_One-Shot_Contest/75492/

I was sitting in the swing that was tied to a branch of the old oak tree in the back yard. Only I wasn't swinging, I was twisting. My toes pointed into the dirt, allowing the wind and god knows what other forces to sway me back and forth.

High School was over. I graduated. I was done. And I was lost. Not so much because I didn't know what to do with myself next, but because I hadn't heard from Eric since the morning after the graduation party.

Eric and I had seen each other every day, since we were little. He was a latch key kid. His mom was dead and his dad was an ass. I had lived with Gran since my parents had died, she was my home but Eric was my anchor.

For as long as I could remember he was there.

I didn't know where he was and I had never needed to call him before. He. Was. Always. There.

And now he just wasn't.

The graduation ceremony was boring. Gran was there for me, but no one was there for Eric, so Gran cheered for him too. Afterwards, she gave us both a kiss and went home.

Eric and I took off for the party after ripping off our gowns and throwing them in the trash. He was wearing his usual, jeans, t shirt, and sandals. I thought I'd be a bit flirtier than usual, instead of the jeans and top I mostly wore, I had on a cotton v-neck sundress. It was dark, with a paisley pattern, and I loved the way its silkiness rubbed against my legs. I pulled my hair out of the pony tail it was in and let it fall down my back. That's when I noticed Eric staring at me. "What?" I raised an eyebrow. "I'm Sookie, nice to meet you."

He hesitated. "Funny…I just don't think I've seen you in a dress before," he smirked and turned his eyes away.

I shook out my hair feeling his hands on my shoulders, pushing me towards his car.

He leaned into me and whispered, "Let's go party."

There was only going to be one big party since our school was so small, just made sense.

I'd never been part of the "in" crowd, but I had known most of them all my life, regardless of whether we liked each other or not. I had a few friends: Eric, Amelia, her boyfriend Tray, and Claudine. Well, Eric and Amelia anyway. Amelia and I were close and we trusted each other, but she spent most of her time with Tray. Claudine was always popping in and out of my life…she was there when I needed her, but other than that, she was not a constant presence.

Eric had more friends, but I don't think he trusted them. He didn't really hang with the popular crowd either, yet all the girls in school wanted to be with him. And why wouldn't they? He was beautiful—a brooding loner, except for me. The girls loved that stuff—except for the "me" part. I didn't stop him from dating, so I don't know what their problem was. He never talked about his dates, and he never hung out with any of the girls he went out with. It didn't matter, and I really didn't want to know anyway. Although Eric and I were friends, it was just a little more than that.

We had always been physical. As kids we roughhoused, and still pushed and prodded each other occasionally. In some ways we were quite affectionate. He held me when I cried, rubbed my shoulders when my head hurt, and sometimes he would whisper things into my hair, like he was telling me a secret even though I could never understand what he was saying. Sometimes, when things got to be too much for him, he'd lay his head in my lap and I'd run my fingers through his soft blond hair. It always calmed us both.

The party was at the lake. Eric and I used to swim there when we were kids, still did sometimes. We would go there for the quiet and to be alone. It was a peaceful place. I'd been there a few times with Bill recently. Bill was cute, dark haired, and kind of intense. He'd been trying to get me to go out with him for a while, and I finally relented. Eric thought he was a douche. Bill took me to a few movies, and always brought me back to the lake afterward. He always tried to make out with me, trying to push me farther than I wanted to go, but I'd never done anything with anyone. There was no one I liked like "that." The only guy I felt anything for was Eric, and those feelings were . . . complicated. Anyway, Bill was a terrible kisser, and he smelled bad, so I stopped seeing him. Eric was right—Bill was a douche.

Eric had the music blasting in the car all the way to the party. He was practically vibrating. I think he was getting himself psyched to be "Party Eric." He knew I was nervous though. I always was in large groups of people. It was like I couldn't get the noise of everyone out of my head, but I'd promised him I would go.

He reached towards me with the hand that wasn't drumming on the steering wheel and rubbed my neck. "Sookie, we'll have fun. We'll have a few beers, make fun of people and go home." I knew that wasn't true. I could tell from the vibes he was putting out that he was pumping himself up for something.

"Eric, my idea of fun is not watching the entire senior class eye fuck you while you flirt with them all night. We'll have a few beers and…"

He looked me in the eye and smirked. "Sookie, would you rather I eye fuck and flirt with you all night?"

My mouth opened but nothing came out. I could feel my face getting hot. I couldn't unlock my eyes from his and he wasn't looking away, although his smirk was gone. A car coming in the other direction blared its horn. Eric swerved violently back into our lane "Shit, Sookie are you okay?" he asked before glancing back at the road.

_Great_. Like my heart wasn't pounding before.

I just nodded my head and looked down at my feet. I didn't know how to respond to him.

_Um, yeah I'm okay, but you're making my mind race and my heart beat out of my chest, and I don't know if you're serious or not, because the way you're looking at me is making me blush and …fuck…._ . Fuck. Everything slowed and you could taste the tension in the air between us—not for the first time. I'd catch Eric watching me, his blue eyes darker than usual. I would feel an energy coming from him, a force strong enough to knock me down. Or, he'd whisper something stupid in my ear, and just the smell of him would send a surge of warmth through my body. I didn't know what to make of it. We had always been friends, really good friends, and things had always been easy and comfortable. Something seemed to be changing, and I wasn't sure if it was coming from me or him or both of us. I'll admit that I started to look at Eric in a way I hadn't before. I was feeling and seeing things in him that I never had. I found myself just watching him sometimes, mesmerized by the natural grace and power that emanated from him—his long strides, muscular arms and broad shoulders, his chest that offered comfort, his smirk and the glimmer in his eyes. I don't know if he noticed. I hadn't said anything and thought I was hiding it pretty well. I looked over at Eric. His drumming had stopped, and he was looking straight ahead at the road in front of us, his mouth fixed as he let out a sigh. The music was still blasting, and there was a palpable quiet between us.

We pulled into the lot by the lake. There were already a ton of people there. I groaned as I reached for the car door.

Eric turned off the ignition and let out a deep breath, "Sookie, wait. I… if you're not having fun, we'll just go, okay?"

I turned to look at him and he was staring at his hands, looking vulnerable, and I felt my stomach clench. "Eric." I waited for him to look up at me. I didn't want him to feel weird and tense. "It'll be fun, okay? We'll have fun."

He smiled, reached out, put his hand on my cheek, and softly stroked my face with his thumb. His skin felt so warm, like it was on fire. His eyes darkened and he licked his lips. My breath caught, and I felt my cheek burning under the touch of his hand. He leaned over and whispered in my ear, "It's always more fun with you." He placed his forehead on mine and hummed. I looked up into his eyes. They were wide open and looking into mine. I felt a swirl of vibrations containing us in our own world. I looked up at his mouth—his lips were parted and inviting. I reached up slowly and touched them. They were so soft and wet, and as I ghosted my fingers across them my hand shook. He wrapped his hand around mine, holding it tightly before he kissed it. I felt something warm building in my stomach that threatened to overtake me. I became teary and completely over powered by this feeling of…want.

Eric's eyes never left mine, and he had the same overwhelmed look in his eyes. Eric's other hand reached around and pulled my hair gently, lifting my face to his and he placed his lips so softly on mine. We didn't move. We didn't breathe.

And…we didn't see Amelia and Tray coming towards the car. Tray pounded on the window and started bouncing on the hood of the car. Eric pulled away from me slowly. His eyes were lighter but still connected to mine. Groaning, he kissed me on the forehead and turned to get out of the car. "Tray, get the fuck off my car before I knock your fucking big ass head into the fucking lake."

I sighed and opened the door.

I got out of the car in a daze wondering what had just happened. I turned around to look at Eric, who was still yelling at Tray and pushing him away from his car. It was actually kind of funny because Eric's car was pretty beat up. He took care of it, working on it himself, keeping it running. It was the only thing that was his and the only thing he took care of, except for me. I was still watching Eric, and still feeling pretty distracted when I was snatched away by Amelia and Claudine. I turned around to catch Eric following me with his eyes. He put Tray in a head lock and they started heading toward us.

"Sookie," Amelia began as Claudine pulled on my arm leading the way to the keg. "Nice dress, by the way," Claudine dropped my arm and spun around. A big grin slowly spread across her face, as Amelia continued "but what exactly was going on in that car?"

"Amelia, just don't, okay. No pushing. No questions. Just—"

I felt an arm reach around my shoulder and a hand twine itself in my hair. "Just what?" Eric asked looking at me and quirking his brow, smiling.

I sighed, "Let's just go get something to drink."

Amelia sidled up to Eric as we walked toward the beverage that would hopefully loosen me up a bit. "So Eric. . ."

I tensed, repeating in my head:_ please Amelia no, just leave it alone please. _Eric's hand wound tighter in my hair. I could feel his whole body stiffen. Evidently whatever was going on with us, he was not ready to put into words, at least not with anyone else around.

"Eric, hair, OUCH!" I didn't really want him to let go, it actually felt kind of good and I didn't want to lose my connection to him, but he was starting to cause some serious pain. He quickly released me as he mumbled something that sounded like "I'm sorry." And he took off toward the beer.

He strode toward the keg ahead of us, his long beautiful legs carrying him away from us quickly. _Shit, shit, shit_. I felt like screaming, actually, I think I did. I was confused. I needed some kind of release from the frustration that Eric was becoming. I settled for beer. Amelia and Tray grabbed me and we continued toward the keg.

I was not happy with Amelia. She always pushed, and it was one of the things I usually loved about her, just not at that moment. And it wasn't really all her fault. Eric and I obviously had something to work out that was spooking both of us. At some point I noticed that Claudine had vanished. Thinking about it, there was something about that grin she gave me before that made me feel lighter, I don't know why, and I felt myself relaxing. I focused on that and hoped that she'd show up again later.

Tray brought us some beer, and I spotted Eric talking to Pam. Ugh. She was the biggest flirt and had slept with at least half our class. She was tall, blond, and had legs that every male dreamed of. She and her family had only lived in town for the past year. They moved into the biggest house—she had her own car, clothes that were not purchased anywhere nearby, and some kind of power that enabled her to get whatever she wanted—just not Eric, at least not yet. I knew that Eric hadn't gone out with her, and he told me he didn't need that kind of trauma but that didn't mean he wouldn't toy with her if he was drunk and weirded out. I took a big gulp of my beer. I needed to not think, not feel for a while. I had too much Eric stuff bottled up inside and if he was going to play with my head, my head needed a vacation—I would just ignore my heart.

I finished my first beer and was on to my second, when Pam caught my eye. She was circling Eric like prey, but he didn't really seem engaged. Tray approached them and handed Eric another beer. Pam seemed a bit insulted and she huffed off to get herself another drink. Tray and Eric were talking rather heatedly. I don't know what about, but Eric just shrugged his shoulders and then he looked up and right at me. He quirked his eyebrow at me and a small smile lit up his face. I could feel my face getting hot and I just shook my head. I was in big trouble. I finished my second beer quickly and slowly went to him, like I was drawn to a magnet.

I grabbed another beer on the way, thinking to myself: _no guts, no glory_. Amelia intercepted me, "Sookie, building up your strength or asking for trouble?" She had me by both shoulders and was seriously sizing me up. How come she wasn't drunk yet?

"I've already found the trouble Amelia. I can only hope for a little strength," I sighed.

"Okay then, let's go see our boys." She squeezed my shoulders and spun me around in their direction. Eric and Tray were watching us make our way toward them, and I felt Eric's eyes trailing over my body. Maybe he liked the dress? I took in a deep breath, held Eric's free hand in mine, and gently squeezed it. He looked at me for what seemed like forever, and then raised my hand to his lips and held it there.

"Sookie," he mouthed into my hand while his eyes held mine. My breath caught and I could not look away from him. We needed to leave. We had to deal with what was going on between us. I pulled my hand from his mouth without letting go of his

"Eric, let's—" And just as I was about to pull him away, Pam came up and slipped her fingers into his belt loop, whispering something in his ear. _Fucking bitch._ Eric was still looking right at me, but he didn't move as I tried to leave. Pam laughed and tugged on his Levis. He didn't let go of my hand, but he was frozen in place. I wasn't going to let Eric play with me like that.

"Eric?" I looked up at him, a tear running down my cheek. He looked confused. I didn't wait for an answer, I just ran. I had found no strength in my drink—so much for ignoring my heart.

I ran to the edge of the lake and muttered, "Fuck." I was crying and swearing way too much. Gran would be pissed. I started walking; I'd walk home if I had to. I didn't want to deal with what I thought was about to happen. I trusted Eric, and I was sure he wouldn't intentionally hurt me, but I didn't know what the hell was going on, and he didn't seem to either. Worse, he didn't seem to know what, or who, he wanted.

I'd felt the same way, except I finally realized what I wanted—probably what I had always wanted—and it was Eric. I reached the woods that bordered the lake. There was enough room to sit by the water, and it was one of the spots Eric and I hung out when we needed quiet. I let out a deep breath and sat, taking my sandals off and putting my feet in the water. I rubbed my eyes, not knowing what to think. I knew what I felt, and I knew I was upset that Eric seemed so changeable, but beyond that I was at a loss. I leaned back against a tree and closed my eyes.

I felt the ground shift and sensed a large warm body next to mine. He didn't say anything, and I was afraid to open my eyes. I took a deep breath in through my nose and smelled sun, sweat, and Eric. I let my breath out and opened my eyes, but I didn't look at him.

"Sookie, I'm sorry," he breathed sadly. I peeked over at him and he looked scared. His elbows were on his knees, his head in his hands. The only time I had ever see him look so lost was when he was dealing with family shit and I knew that tore him up inside.

"Eric, do you know what you want?" I didn't give him time to tell me what he was apologizing for; I couldn't stand seeing him like that. I wasn't sure what his answer would be or if I would get one, but frankly I needed some insight into this boy that was slowly becoming a stranger and yet all too familiar at the same time.

His exhale was shaky and he was looking at our images in the lake. He spoke to my reflection, his eyes locked on mine, "I want you. I've only ever wanted you."

I got up onto my knees and embraced his face with my hands, turning it towards me. I wanted to look into his beautiful blue eyes. I wanted him to see me.

"Then want me Eric. Please, just want me." Relief washed through me and tears ran down my cheeks, as he pulled me into his lap facing him, my legs on either side of his. He softly kissed away my tears, and pulled me into his chest as he leaned back against the tree. His arms wrapped around me and he stroked my hair. He kissed the top of my head, taking in a deep breath. I could feel his heart beating and a rumble in his chest.

"Remember when I came over a few weeks ago around dinner?"

"Eric, you always come by around dinner, which time are you talking about?"

"When I had a black eye?"

Oh, I remembered that, "Yes," was all I said. Fucking, god damndrunken asshole father wouldn't leave him alone. Eric had remained remarkably unscathed, but he was big enough to fight back and I was afraid he was going to get into trouble. I wondered how he had held back for so long. We both new he needed out of that house, fast.

"I realized with graduation, I was going to have to leave…"

"Eric,' I looked up from resting my head on his chest "you know Gran said you could always stay with us, anytime for as long as you needed."

He stroked my cheek "I know, let me finish. I was sitting on your porch with a bag of ice on my face watching you and Gran picking vegetables for dinner. The sun was going down, and your hair was shining, you were glowing. You were so fucking beautiful Sookie, it took my breath away."

He was quiet for a minute, and I kept my mouth shut but I couldn't take my eyes off him. "That's when something changed for me. I realized that I couldn't lose you and that when I left, I would."

I opened my mouth to talk, but he put his finger over it to silence me. His eyes were shining, reflecting whatever he was remembering. "After dinner, we sat in the chair on the porch. I was between your legs resting my head on your shoulder and you just held me all night until we fell asleep. When I woke, the sun was coming up. I was so…I wanted you so badly, to touch you, kiss you, it was overwhelming. I had to leave. I wasn't sure if you felt the same way, and I wasn't ready to deal with that if you didn't.

"So when I saw you later, I pretended like everything was normal and never said anything to you. I started watching you all the time, the way you moved, your body, Sookie, it's so beautiful. I just wanted to hold you. I noticed the way your hair smelled, like sunshine and citrus. You would catch me and joke about it. I slipped a few times when I couldn't resist touching you. But you always seemed so surprised; I didn't know what to think. I guess as graduation got closer, I got scared. I knew we needed to talk, but I was afraid of losing you Sookie.

"I finally decided that at the party I was going to let you know how I felt. I was so fucking nervous and then Amelia set me off. I just wasn't ready to talk about us, when we hadn't even talked about us.

"We've been friends for so long and I didn't want to lose that, but I want more. Sookie, you're the best and only important thing in my life. If I fuck that up, I don't know what I would do with myself."

_My Eric_, I sighed "you're never going to lose me."

His eyes blazed and that smirk started to show itself. He didn't have to say anything else. He placed his hand on the back of my head and pulled me to him. His lips ghosted mine and my name came out of his mouth like a whisper. His lips met mine with such tenderness and reverence I melted. I wrapped my arms around his neck to pull him close, opening my mouth. He moaned and his tongue found its way to mine, as his hands tangled in my hair. I pulled away panting "Eric," I bit my lip, "Don't ever let go of me."

He gazed at me with a look that said _thank you_ and _I want to fuck your brains out_ at the same time. My brains had never been fucked, so I was looking forward to it.

It had gotten dark and we were both hungry, so we made our way back to the party and grabbed some food. We found Tray and Amelia on a blanket and joined them. Eric shot them both a glance and nothing was said.

We had been sitting around laughing and drinking, and the band was starting warm up. I wasn't really interested. In fact, I was actually getting tired. I could tell that Eric was too. He pulled me between his legs with my back up against his chest. I rested my head between his neck and shoulder as he stroked my arms. I felt warm and wanted. I could so get used to this.

"Do you want to go home soon?"

I was surprised that he asked. "Yeah, I kind of do, I'm getting tired, it's been a long day."

He buried his face into my hair and whispered, "Whenever you're ready," and kissed my ear. He pulled me up from behind and took my hand. We said good night to Amelia and Tray and made our way to Eric's car.

I looked over at him and he had this beautiful smile on his face.

The ride to Gran's was quiet, we were both exhausted. It had been a very emotional day for both of us. We pulled up in front of the house and Eric turned the ignition off and turned his body to mine. He started to reach out for me but I stopped him. "Eric, stay, on the porch, with me in the chair."

He smiled at me. "Gran will be okay with this?"

I smiled, "Gran will be fine."

I crept inside, washed my face and brushed my teeth while I was in there, grabbed a few bottles of water and a blanket and went back out. I found Eric in the chair, his legs parted with just enough room for me to snuggle up in.

As I curled into him, he let out a soft moan. "Are you okay with this?" I asked as I looked up at him.

He lifted my chin and kissed me gently on the lips. "I'm perfect."

I pulled the blanket up around us and pressed my face into his chest. With his arms around me, I think we were asleep in seconds.

When I woke up he was gone.

I know Eric wanted me to trust him, so I was trying, but I was worried. I thought when we woke up together, things would be different.

Gran was making breakfast. "Sleep well?" she asked with a bemused tone.

"Yeah Gran, really well. Have you seen Eric?"

"No, honey, not this morning," she replied, never taking her eyes off the frying pan.

So, he left early. Okay, I was not going to worry. I had breakfast with Gran, not really feeling very hungry. I showered, and spent the day with Gran doing chores hoping Eric would show up for dinner.

He didn't.

I woke up early the next morning. I was going to have to go to his house, whether I wanted to or not. _Suck it up Stackhouse, he'd do the same for you._

I had breakfast with Gran, showered and hopped on my bike. I slowed as I got to his house. It was small, dirty, and run down. My heart ached for Eric. There was no love here. I leaned my bike up against the front porch and slowly climbed the stairs. I stood in front of the door for a while, listening and hearing nothing but silence. I knocked anyway. My heart was pounding and I didn't know if I wanted Eric to open the door or not.

The door swung open violently and a man, who looked like an older, used up and spit out Eric, stood there. He was staring at me and he smelled, badly. His eyes were black and swollen, his bottom lip was cut and he was missing a few teeth, his entire face was bruised. My stomach bottomed out. Shit, where was Eric?

"Who the fuck are you and what the fuck do you want?" he spat at me in disgust.

"I'm looking for Eric." My insides were churning as I tried to put up a brave front.

A sickening grin spread out across his face and he spit. "Bastard's not here, don't expect him back." And he slammed the door in my face.

What the hell did that mean? Was Eric really not there? Was he hurt?? Fuck, I hoped he wasn't in jail. Something seemed to have happened, although I couldn't know for sure. I mean the guy cold have gotten into some kind of bar fight or something, right? That did not seem out of the realm of possibility. But I had a feeling that wasn't the case. I felt nauseous, helpless, and scared.

I had no idea what to do next.

I rode my bike to the lake. There weren't any cars in the lot. I sat by the lake and put my feet in the water. I started thinking about Eric's home. I couldn't believe he had been living there, but if he wasn't staying with Gran and me, where would he go?

I was pretty sure his Father hadn't killed him. He wasn't at the lake and he wasn't at my house. I tried to push the idea of Pam out of my head. Where the fuck was he? I wondered if I had done something wrong. I didn't think so. The last thing I remember him saying was "perfect" and he had been safe and warm with me.

I rode home sad, worried, and alone. I spent the rest of the afternoon in the backyard swinging on my old swing that was tied to the oak tree. Gran called me in for dinner and let me poke at my food in silence. I was guessing that she knew that Eric not being around had something to do with it. I helped Gran clean up, grabbed the blanket and went to sit out on the front porch.

I must fallen asleep because I woke up to the sound of tires on our gravel driveway. It wasn't Eric. I knew the sound of his car, but I wasn't sure who it was. I got up and turned the porch light on. It seemed kind of late, but I wasn't sure. I started to panic. It didn't look like a police car. I stood on the porch, staring at the car, it seemed familiar, but I couldn't see inside it. The front door opened and out popped Claudine. Relief washed over me. "Hey, Claudine, what's up?" I'm not sure the last time she was here, but she usually showed up unannounced.

"Sookie," she said as she came up on the porch and kissed me on the cheek, "I just wanted to see how you were. You and Eric seemed to be having a pretty interesting night at the party." With the mention of Eric's name, tears welled up in my eyes, my lower lip quivered. I was trying so hard not to cry, but the feeling of loss was frightening. Claudine put her arm around me and led me to the porch swing. Sitting beside me, she started rocking and rubbing my shoulder.

"I haven't seen him since the morning after the party. We slept in the chair," I told her, pointing to the one in the corner of the porch. "Everything seemed fine, more than fine actually. But when I woke up he was gone. I've looked for him. I even went to his house."

Claudine cringed at the mention of that piece of information. "His father was beaten and bruised. I'm afraid something's happened to Eric. If he needs help, he would come here, he always has before."

I collapsed into her, exhausted by everything that had just poured out of me. Claudine just kept rocking, "I'm sure he's okay, he'll come home. He needs you Sookie." I nodded my head, feeling slightly better with the thought that someone believed he would come back okay. Claudine stood, "Let's go for a walk," she reached out for my hand and pulled me up.

"Isn't it late?" I had no idea what time it was, but the moon was high and bright in the sky lighting up the path to the field behind my house.

We walked in silence. I could hear water moving. It must have been the stream that fed into the lake. I had heard that people fished out there, but had never been. We climbed up a small hill. The ground was a bit damp, but we sat in the moonlight facing the sound of the water.

I took a deep breath and wrapped the blanket tighter around myself. I'm not sure how long we sat there. It was nice out, but we'd been there long enough for me to notice that the moon had moved slightly. It was no longer beaming down directly on us, but on a small tent hidden in the high grass at the bottom of the hill. Space had been cleared out in front of it and a small fire was burning itself out. I could see a shadow of a figure making its way from the stream to the tent. It was kind of creepy and sad thinking that someone was living out here behind my house. I wondered if he was homeless or just camping. As he got closer to the spot where the moon was shining down he began to look familiar. Tall, broad shoulders long arms and legs. . . I let out a low groan. _Eric_.

I started to get up, but Claudine held onto my arm, "Sookie, quiet."

"Claudine, how did you know he was here?" I could barely whisper. I was so happy that Eric was okay, but hurt and confused that he was out here alone.

"My Grandfather and I were fishing a last week and we saw Eric bathing in the stream. He didn't see us, and I never said anything. I didn't want to embarrass him."

I was going to start crying again. _Eric…what the fuck_? "Claudine, I need to go to him. Please, I can't wait and I don't want to lose him again. I can't." I stood, pulling the blanket tighter. I started down the hill, but turned back. "Claudine, thank you." She was already gone. I wanted to run down the hill, hold his face in my hands and see if he was okay. But I took a deep breath to calm myself down.

I made my way slowly, so I wouldn't fall, and quietly, although I was pretty sure I didn't want to surprise Eric Northman in the dark, in a field, alone after what I thought he had just gone through. As I got closer I noticed he had built the fire back up. He was sitting in front of it, intently wrapping his hand with a bandage. His knuckles must have been ripped up from the pounding his father's face had taken. My toe caught on something and I only had my sandals on so although I did not fall, I did wince loud enough for Eric to hear.

He stood and turned toward where I was standing, the tension visible in his body. I could feel his eyes focusing on me, "Sookie?" I walked to him in silence. As I got closer, I could see his body relaxing and he came to meet me. He was moving okay, it looked like he had some bruises on his face and a cut above his eye. Neither one of us said anything. It felt like something was pulling us toward each other. I finally reached him, and he leaned over and grabbed my waist, pulling me to him. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling myself up his body, and wrapped my legs around his waist. "Eric," I sobbed into his neck.

"Sookie, I'm sorry. I'm okay. I'm so sorry. Please?" He held me to him, but I couldn't get close enough. He brought me over to the fire, sat down with me in his lap, and he let me cry, rocking and soothing me until I was spent.

I pulled away from him a bit, to see his eyes. God, I was a snotty mess. He handed me a t-shirt from the ground, and I wiped my face and blew my nose. I looked back to his eyes, they were dark and questioning. I reached up to kiss him and he met my lips gently with his. "Sookie, how, what are you doing here?"

"Eric, I've been looking for you since I woke up and you were gone." I stroked his hair, "Claudine saw you here last week."

"Sookie, after we spent the night on the porch a few weeks ago, I realized I couldn't stay in that house anymore. I hadn't been back since. Something was going to happen, and I had to leave. I went back the morning after the party to get the rest of my stuff. I figured it was early so my father would still be passed out. But he woke up and he just came at me. I couldn't help it, I just lost it."

I looked down at his bandaged hand. He seemed to be ashamed. I took it in mine, brought it to my lips, and kissed his palm. I reached up and held his face in my hands, "Eric it's not your fault. This was bound to happen. I'm just surprised that it took so long for you to snap."

He let out a heavy sigh, putting his forehead to mine. "Eric, you can stay with us. We have an extra room, and you would have been welcome and safe, this whole time. Why didn't you come to us for help?

He kissed my forehead and brushed the hair out of my face. "Sookie, I didn't know what was going on with us, remember? I was confused and I didn't think living in the same house together was a good idea at the time. I thought it might make things between us worse."

"But why didn't you come back after the fight, Eric? We would have taken care of you."

"Sookie, I fucked up. I was bleeding and embarrassed. I've always been able to walk away, to be better than him, and this time I wasn't. I didn't want you to see me like that."

I nuzzled into his neck, "I'm just glad you're safe. Please don't go back to your house again. Your dad is one scary bastard."

Eric's voice changed, it was low and deep and came from a place I didn't know. "You went to my house? He didn't touch you—"

"No Eric, I'm fine, he just slammed the door in my face. That's as close as he got to me." He was still staring at me incredulously. "I was looking for you. I was scared. I'm sorry I went there, but I needed to know that you were okay."

He pulled me closer, if that was possible. "I'm sorry you had to see that Sookie."

I kept twining his hair with my fingers. I felt so bad for him, "Eric you're safe, we're together, and we'll figure this out." I kissed the hollow of his neck and nuzzled my face into his chest. His scent was intoxicating.

"I want to stay with you tonight Eric. I need to be with you."

"Sookie," he whispered and everything seemed to slow down. His eyes were impossibly dark and heavy. He placed a hand on either side of my face and looked into my eyes for some kind of answer.

"Yes Eric," I whispered breathlessly.

He pressed his lips into mine—they were so full and wet and warm and urgent and full of need. He kissed me long and deeply, possessing every part of me with one single action. I parted my lips allowing his tongue entry and moaned as ours met and intertwined. Eric's arms ghosted down my sides and reached the hem of my shirt, slowly raising it up and over my head. He reached behind me and unclasped my bra, pulling the straps down and off my arms. His arms circled my naked back and I felt the roughness of his palms as they caressed my skin. He pulled away from my lips and looked down at me. "Shit, Sookie, you're so fucking beautiful," he breathed. I lifted my face to his, there was a tear rolling down his cheek, I reached for him and kissed it away. "So beautiful."

I pulled his shirt over his head and whimpered, almost naked Eric in the moonlight was a magnificent thing. I placed my hands on his chest, wanting to touch every part of him. He leaned down brushing my lips with his and kissed his way down my neck. His hand cupped one of my breasts and tweaked my nipple; rolling it between his fingers I let gasped and arched my back into him. "Eric."

He looked up at me with a smile and whispered in my ear, "Sookie I want you, all of you." He kissed my lips, then bent over and placed his mouth on my breast and sucked and tickled it with his tongue, and oh my fucking god it felt so good.

I moaned and pulled him closer. "Fuck Eric.' I could feel him smiling. I reached from his hair and began caressing his neck, and his shoulders felt so hard and strong. I moved my hands to his chest and pinched his nipples in return. He hissed my name as he stood up, holding me up under my butt, he leaned over and squeezed us into his tent. He lowered himself to his knees and gently lay me down on his sleeping bag. He placed his hands on either side of my face and slowly leaned in to kiss me, as he lowered the rest of his body on top of mine. His weight on top of me was like a force, merging us together. He ground his crotch into mine and fuck, I arched into him again. "Eric, yes," I sighed. He moaned into my mouth and pulled away, his dark hooded eyes seeking permission to continue.

"Eric, I've never…"

"I know Sookie, neither have I."

I pulled his face back to mine, crashing my lips into his. He looked up at me again and began kissing each of my eyes, and then slowly wound his way to my ears, swirling his tongue around the back of my ear, until he settled at the crook of my jaw and sucked and nibbled until I was writhing under him. "Eric, please," I begged. I had never wanted or felt so much in my entire life. I felt desire radiating from me; I could have been glowing for all I knew.

He made his way back to my breasts, kissing each one like a blessing. He kissed down my belly until he got to my jeans. He looked up at me and rose to his knees. Never taking his eyes off mine, he undid all the buttons of my jeans and pulled them off along with my panties. He scanned my entire body from my feet up, stopping only when he got to my eyes. "So fucking beautiful," he whispered, almost to himself. Backing off the bed, he stood and ripped open the buttons of his jeans, dropping them to the floor. He was glorious.

I raised my self up on my elbows allowing my gaze to sweep over his body. His cock was big and hard and perfect, and it scared me a bit. I looked up into the beautiful blueness of his eyes and reached for him pulling him to me as he crawled up my body, and a small smile spread across his face. He settled himself back between by legs, molding his lips to mine. We both moaned and I felt his cock twitch against my thigh.

Without breaking our kiss, he rolled us onto our sides and hitched my leg over his hip. He reached down stroked the wetness between my legs. "Fuck Sookie, you're so ready." He slowly slid one finger into me, twisting it around and slowly moving it in and out as his thumb caressed my clit. I felt like I was going to come out of my skin. He slid in another finger and spread them apart as he continued to move them in and out of my wetness. "Sookie, does that hurt?"

He looked into my eyes. I smiled, "God Eric, no, I've never" —but I couldn't finish. I felt my lower belly tighten and I started pushing back into his hand. "Yes, Eric, please don't stop," I breathed.

He nuzzled into my ear, "Sookie, are you going to cum on my hand?"

"Yes, Eric, please don't stop." The tightness spread from my belly, down my legs and I felt my self clench around his fingers as I came. "Oh fuck, Eric." He groaned as he pumped his fingers into me until my breathing slowed.

He kissed my ear and he kissed my mouth, and he looked into my eyes, "There is nothing a perfect as your face when you cum. I want to see that again." He rolled me over on my back and rubbed the head of his cock slowly up and down my slit. We both moaned at the feeling of hot and smooth. He positioned himself at my entrance and pushed. I felt my self stretching to take him in. He looked at me and asked, "Okay?" His voice was ragged and rough. I nodded, too overwhelmed to form words. He pushed in a little further and stopped, allowing me to accommodate him.

We were both breathless and I could tell he was holding back. "Eric, please…all the way," kissing his chin. His eyes fixed on mine as he pressed himself into me. We were both still, our breathing matched. I had never felt so full and complete. He kissed me deeply and softly, moaning into my mouth.

My hips arched into his and I felt his smile on my lips. He slowly pulled out a little and pushed back in, "Good?" I just smiled back at him as he pulled out further and reentered me.

"Fuck, Eric, yes…so fucking good," I whimpered. He gently increased the pace of his thrusts. He was so hard and hot, and he filled up every inch of me. Burying his face in my hair he said, "Sookie."

"Yes, Eric, cum, I want to feel it." He breathed my name and started thrusting in and out of me harder. Every time he hit my opening I could feel myself tighten around him.

"Oh Eric, just like that."

"Sookie," he was up on his elbows as he whispered, "look at me."

My eyes shot open and I poured everything I was feeling into his. I felt myself clamp down on his cock hard over and over as my body responded to his.

"Fuck……..Sookie." He thrust into me and I felt the warmth of him spill into me as he pressed us together. We were both soaked and panting, and smiling at each other like we had discovered some thing new.

He fell off to the side, bringing me with him and wrapping his leg around me, pulling me close. He kissed my forehead and then my lips, stroking my cheek, gazing into my eyes.

"Eric."

"Hmmmm?"

"Will you show me what to do? I mean how to touch…" I couldn't finish. Saying it and doing it seemed to be two different things. "I mean, can we practice?" I grinned.

He laughed and beamed at me, "As much as you want Sookie." I turned over and scooted my butt into him. My head fit perfectly under his chin. He wrapped his arms and leg around me and he hummed me to sleep.

We woke up the next morning together and very happy. He took me down to the stream to wash up and we made our way back to the campsite holding hands. I was giddy.

I looked up at him, "Eric, you said you never did it, Why not?"

"What did you think I was some kind of slut or something?"

"No Eric, really wait……any girl would have bent over for you anywhere you wanted, you …went out with them and you never..."

"No Sookie. I didn't want them. I made out with them, and did other things, but I never fucked any of them."

"But they said…"

"Sookie they lied. I only ever wanted you."

I felt a grin spreading across my lips. I was so ready for this.

We packed Eric's stuff and loaded up his car. It only took a few minutes to get to Gran's. We popped into the kitchen as Gran was starting to make breakfast. I kissed her on the cheek good morning. "Good Morning dear, you must have gotten up early, oh and you've found Eric, how wonderful. Eric, would you like to stay for breakfast?"

He looked down and smiled, "Yeah, if it's no trouble." Gran looked appalled. With her hands on her hips, she turned to him, "Eric has it ever been any trouble to have you here?"

I grinned at him as we set the table for the three of us and poured the juice. We sat down to eat, Eric was ravenous. I don't know if it was from our activities or the fact that maybe he hadn't been eating well for a while.

"Gran, Eric needs to stay with us for a while okay?"

"Of course, Eric you're always welcome here for as long as you need."

"And Gran, Eric is my boyfriend now, is it still okay?" Better to get things out in the open with Gran because she always knew what was going on.

She smiled, "well, we'll figure it out as we go, how's that?"

I looked at Eric and he shook his head and smiled. 'I think we can work with that Gran, thank you."

A/N….took me long enough, huh? Thank you everyone for pushing, I hope I didn't disappoint. Maybe this will be the first of many and better fics to come.

You all know how fucking awesome FDM is, so I won't embarrass her anymore and thanks to Kyss for the extra nudge off the cliff.

Oh, I forgot…it is scientific fact that the hymen can be separated for reasons quite unconnected to sexual intercourse. So it is often not intact when a girl or woman loses her virginity, especially now days. It can separate when the body is stretched strenuously, as in athletics; it can be separated by inserting a tampon during menstruation or through masturbation; and sometimes it is separated for no apparent reason. You can look it up.


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